I got it in Spanish. For the technical part: the animation looks a lot like old american cartoons (similar, in some way, to Dungeons and Dragons), and is much more fluent than many animés I’ve seen. The coloring is very well done. The sound FX and soundtrack are nice too. The version I got has a dubbing that’s just a bit above average quality. But the story, oh the story…
It’s like japanese Dungeons & Dragons 1st Edition. Somebody told me it was based on a book called The Grey Witch or something, but I say it was based on the D&D1 manual and a campaign the staff had at home. They have one character for each character class minus the halfling (it was the most boring and useless class anyway). I can even recognize by heart most of the spells used. And the characters attitudes follow the stereotypes we’ve grown used to.
Which leads me to the following reaction: I could - and will - dennounce all the clicheness and nonsense in the way the plot, lines and actions go. But besides the fact that The Order of the Stick does that with updates, I am a die-hard, hardcore fan of D&D. The 2nd edition was my favorite thing during my adolescence. It opened my mind to roleplaying in general, which led me to fantasy books and videogame RPG’s later on. So I am giving this animé two thumbs up. It so seems like the kind of adventure I used to play, down to the characters’ choice words.
For those who don’t mind spoilers, though these would be actually more than expected if you ever played D&D; These are a few things from the prologue (I put a special touch to these):
[spoiler]
Thief: do we really have to go through this tunnel?
Cleric: there are other safer ways, but this is a shortcut.
Elf: this path is full of shit [she literally said that in the version I got]
Dwarf: if you don’t like it you can go back to the woods, this way no elf gets to stain dwarven grounds with their dirty feet!
The party is walking through a dark tunnel.
Warrior: how farther do us have to walk?
Cleric: Alas, I have no idea. We must only allow ourselves to be guided by the instincts of our dwarven comrade.
Dwarf: I’m guided by the trails of the legends of my people.
Elf: Le sigh. Any path is longer when a dwarf is on the lead.
The only other place a classic adventure can begin other than a tavern is in a throne room, being sent by the king. So it came to be that the warrior stood before the monarch.
-…And that, my lord, is why we must go in a journey through dark tunnels filled with monsters and treasures, remainders or a time when gods walked upon the Earth and warred among themselves.
-Young lad, there is no knowing if you would be able to come back alive.
-Alas, destiny sends us towards this adventure, M’lord.
-I see. And what’s with that armor? I seem to recognize it.
-It belonged to my father, once a great adventurer under your command…
Wizard: we must seek for our companions, the warrior and the elven lady, for they are lost.
Dwarf: they will evetually find us. Come on, finding your way through tunnels is a piece of cake. I’m practically a natural at it.
Thief: Dude, they’re probably having a good intimate party instead of trying to find us.
Dwarf: shut up, only humans allow emotions to get to their brains and limit their capacities.
Obscure woman that looks like a mage villain, or rather a animé and female version of the Avenger, talking to an obscure man that looks like a goodguy retired mage, or rather a tall japanese version of the Dungeon Master, lookin at heroes through a crystall ball:
-Yo, guess what awaits for the heroes right at the exit of the tunnel they’re at?
audience: a dragon!
shady woman: it’s a very powerful being, the kind that has a very large treasure.
audience: OMG it must be a dragon!
shady woman: it’s scaly, breathes fire, and in our time it used to be the baddass of a last boss for anyone who could reach the ultimate and final 6th character level.
audience: I could bet 100 golden pieces it’s a dragon!
woman: yep. A sleeping dragon, about to be woken up! XD
audience: WTF a dragon! Beware guys!
male mage that had been hearing it all the time, to the woman: }:[ (I’m not kidding on this one)
The elf chick suddenly stops walking and rises a ear.
Warrior: wassup?
Elf: Quiet. I’m using my keen elven senses to hear that loud noise that just echoed by again.
Dragon appears. Audience almost sings Trog Dor.
Warrior: I’m gonna kick his ass!
Elf: NO YOU DOPE YOU CAN’T!
Warrior swings sword against dragon and connects. Doesn’t even tickle though. Must be because he didn’t have good Thaco rolls.
Thief: what the heck is that thing?
Audience: OMG thief dunno dragons LOL
Warrior, to dragon: bastard! stop having such a hard skin so I can kill you!
Elf: Dwarf! Make yourself useful dammit!
Dwarf: Settle down, we dwarves have our own methods leapes to dragon’s face, burrows an axe in the beast’s forehead
thief throws a dagger to the dragon’s eye, blinds the beast
warrior finally pierces the beast’s chin
Author: Dude, that’s three critical hits in a row! We’re lucky today!
just as the dragon falls (what a glass-chinned monster, huh?) the tunnel collapses for no apparent reason on him. Party barely escapes alive
Narrator: the adventure of our friends has just begun. They will have much more random encounters… And an unknown destiny.
(these are his literal words in the version I got, I swear!)[/spoiler]